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Pauline Collins, best known for her role in the movie Shirley Valentine, has passed away at the eighty-five years old.

Her passing was peaceful in her London residence, in the company of her loved ones after living with Parkinson's for a number of years, according to her relatives.

Collins will be best remembered for her depiction of disgruntled housewife Shirley in the director's award-winning film, based on the celebrated theatrical production by playwright Willy Russell.

Her critically acclaimed performance also earned her the Golden Globe for outstanding actress as well as a Bafta.

'Sparkling Personality'

Her relatives released a statement saying: "Pauline was so many things to so many people, playing a variety of roles in her career. An intelligent, lively, and humorous figure on theater and film. Her distinguished work saw her portray leaders, parents, and royalty."

"Her memory will endure as the legendary, determined, lively, and insightful Shirley Valentine - a role that she made all her own. We were familiar with all those parts of her because her charm was embedded in each one of them."

They added she was their "devoted mother, our wonderful grandma and great-grandmother", and her husband John Alderton's "life-long love"

"Kind, humorous, giving, considerate, intelligent, she was always there for us," they expressed, thanking her carers, who looked after her with "respect, empathy, and above all affection"

"She experienced a calmer departure. We ask that you recall her at the height of her powers; so joyful and full of energy; and give us the space and privacy to contemplate a life without her"

New York Theater

She initially performed the lead part of Shirley Valentine at the Vaudeville Theatre in the UK capital in 1988. She received that year's Olivier award for outstanding actress.

A year later she returned to the character on Broadway, New York, where she earned several awards including a esteemed Tony Award.

The film of the same name was released later that year.

Additional movie roles included 1991's City of Joy with actor Patrick Swayze, shot in Kolkata, which brought her wider recognition worldwide.

A native of Exmouth in 1940, Collins was raised near Liverpool and started out her career as a teacher.

Her love of the stage inspired her to pursue acting on a side basis, and in 1957 she appeared briefly as a medical attendant in the TV series Emergency Ward 10.

She starred in the film Secrets of a Windmill Girl in 1966, playing a fictional dancer in a London adult entertainment venue, the Windmill Theater.

Following several theater parts, she used her Liverpool accent to secure a part on The Liver Birds.

It was through acting that she encountered her spouse John Alderton. They married in 1969 and had three children, Nicholas, Kate, and Richard.

The couple performed alongside each other in a number of television and film roles, such as Upstairs, Downstairs, in which she played a maid in the acclaimed ITV program.